Oklahoma City, Okla. - After three sessions, Lindenwood (Mo.) remains in control at the 2009 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Wrestling National Championships. 

The Lions are at the top of the team standings with 147 points. Lindenwood has five grapplers left in the championship bracket who have reached the championship finals: Ray Stephens (133), Sam Schmidtz (149), Jeremy Powell (157), John Murray (165) and Matt Cauley (174). Three other Lions remain in the consolation bracket.

Powell collected another pin after winning his quarterfinal match by a 3-2 decision. He has three pins in the tournament.

The 133 pound semifinal featured Lindenwood's Stephens and Jon Lloyd battling it out to make the finals. The first round was a stalemate with the two grapplers fighting for any edge they could. Stephens broke out in the second earning eight points to Lloyd's three. A Stephens' pin then ended the match.

Schmitz used his raw aggression combined with skillful finesse to move on to the finals. Schmitz was down 4-1 before taking down Missouri Valley's Brian Graham twice. Schmitz scored a near fall good for three points and won the match 8-4 by decision.

Cauley won by major decision defeating Northwestern's Tom Eaton 19-9. He defeated Oklahoma City's Dillion Blackmon by pin in the quarterfinals.

Murray defeated teammate Chris Chionuma (165) by decision. 

Southern Oregon is in second place with 107.5 points. Missouri Valley is third with 103 points.  McKendree (Ill.) is in fourth with 94.5 points.  Rounding out the top five is Dickinson State (N.D.) with 72.5 points.  
 
Southern Oregon has three left in the championship bracken. Missouri Valley, McKendree (Ill.) and Montana State-Northern each have two competitors remaining in the championship bracket. Dickenson State, Campbellsville (Ky.), Notre Dame (Ohio), Grand View (Iowa), King (Tenn.) and Simon Fraser (B.C.) each have one wrestler competing for titles in their class.
 
Montana State-Northern senior Corey Borges (125 lb.), Lindenwood senior Raymond Stephens (133 lb.) and Lindenwood senior Matt Cauley (174 lb.) remain in the championship bracket with hopes of defending their 2008 individual titles.
 
The tournament will resume with session four Saturday morning at 10:00 a.m. CST.  The Championship Finals will begin at 6:30 p.m. CST.
 
For more information and updated results, visit the NAIA Wrestling Championships Page.
http://naia.cstv.com/sports/m-wrestl/spec-rel/010708aad.html

NAIA Team Standings after Session Three
Place/Points/Team
1 147.0 Lindenwood 
2 107.5 Southern Oregon 
3 103.0 Missouri Valley 
4 94.5 McKendree 
5 72.5 Dickinson State 
6 63.5 Notre Dame 
7 62.0 Campbellsville 
8 53.0 MSU-Northern
9 51.0 Grand View 
10 46.0 Menlo 
11 43.0 King 
11 43.0 Missouri Baptist 
13 40.5 Great Falls 
13 40.5 Oklahoma City 
15 36.5 California Baptist 
16 32.0 Embry-Riddle 
17 31.0 Cumberland 
18 30.5 Simon Fraser 
19 27.0 Dana 
20 26.0 Briar Cliff 
21 25.0 Morningside 
22 23.5 Northwestern 
23 19.5 Dakota Wesleyan 
24 18.5 Waldorf 
25 12.0 Hastings 
26 9.0 Cumberlands 
27 5.5 William Penn 
28 5.0 York 
29 2.0 Jamestown 
30 1.0 Sioux Falls 
31 0.5 West Virginia Tech
32 0.0 Bacone